ASIA-PACIFIC TELECOMMUNITY
The 14th South Asian Telecommunication Regulator’s
Council Meeting (SATRC-14)
14 – 16 May 2013, Bandos Island, Maldives
Document
SATRC-14/OUT-05
16 May 2013
SUMMARY RECORDS OF THE 14TH SOUTH ASIAN
TELECOMMUNICATION REGULATOR’S COUNCIL
1. INTRODUCTION
The 14th South Asian Telecommunication Regulator’s Council (SATRC-14) was held at Bandos
Resort Island, Republic of Maldives from 14 – 16 May 2013. The meeting was organized by the
Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT) and hosted by the Communication Authority of Maldives
(CAM).
The objectives of the meeting were to consider the status of implementation of SATRC Action
Plan Phase IV, adopt the final outcomes of the SATRC Action Plan Phase IV which had been
completed until then and to share experiences among the regulators. The meeting was attended
by [74] delegates representing SATRC member administrations, affiliate members, and the
private sectors of the host country.
2. OPENING SESSION
2.1 The opening ceremony began with the recitation from Holy Quran.
2.2 Welcome Address by Mr. Ilyas Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer, Communication
Authority of Maldives
Mr. Ilyas Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer, Communication Authority of Maldives delivered
welcome address. He thanked H. E. Mr. Ameen Ibrahim, Minister of Transport and
Communications of the Republic of Maldives for his presence. Welcoming all the delegates to
the 14th meeting of SATRC he mentioned that SATRC was an important forum of the telecom
regulators in South Asia. He added that last few years SATRC had seen fastest
telecommunication growth in the world and that also brought several challenges in the region
such as equitable distribution of telecom services, spectrum management and introduction of
new technologies in wireless broadband. He mentioned that SATRC is an appropriate platform
for the members of the SATRC countries to discuss and learn from the success and failure of the
regulatory regimes. He thanked APT for providing excellent support for SATRC activities. He
hoped that the outcomes of the meeting would help to strengthen the future activities of SATRC
and increase the relationship among it’s members.
Full texts of Mr. Ilyas’s speech can be found in document INP-01.
Contact:
FORHADUL PARVEZ
Asia Pacific Telecommunity
Tel: +66 2 573 0044
Fax: + 66 2 573 7479
Email: parvez@apt.int
SATRC-13/OUT-04
2.3 Opening Remarks by Mr. Kraisorn Pornsutee, Deputy Secretary General, Asia-Pacific
Telecommunity
Mr. Kraisorn Pornsutee, Deputy Secretary General of APT welcomed all the delegates. He
thanked the Minister of Transport and Communication for gracing the opening ceremony. He
also thanked Communication Authority of Maldives (CAM) for making excellent arrangement.
Mr. Kraisorn mentioned that in recent years South Asian region have seen rapid development in
telecommunications. Broadband access to communications and access to internet through
mobile devices have increased and have changed the business scenario for telecom industry. He
hoped that in SATRC, regulators would discuss openly various important issues such as license
renewal, equitable access to scare resources and taxation, and would take initiatives to improve
the telecommunication environment in the region.
Mr. Kraisorn mentioned that the SATRC Action Plan Phase IV which was adopted by the 13th
SATRC is progressing well. Indicating the implementation of SATRC Action Plan Phase IV, he
mentioned the experts in the working groups were working closely on the work items assigned
to them. He thanked the Chairman and experts of SATRC WG Spectum who had worked hard
for the final outcomes for two work items. He also thanked the host countries who had hosted
various SATRC events during the implementation of Action Plan Phase IV. He hoped that
SATRC Members would maintain the same state of support and cooperation for implementing
the remaining part of the SATRC Action Plan Phase IV.
Full texts of Mr. Kraisorn’s speech can be found in document INP-02.
2.4 Inaugural Address by H. E. Mr. Ameen Ibrahim, Minister of Transport and
Communication, Republic of Maldives
H. E. Mr. Ameen Ibrahim, Minister of Transport and Communication, Republic of Maldives
delivered the inaugural address. He welcomed all the delegates at the meeting. He emphasized
that at current telecommunication development scenario, it is not possible for a single country to
make effort by its own, rather it in necessary to have cooperative approaches. Mentioning the
importance of SATRC, he said that he hope that SATRC would focus on challenging issues for
the region and making efforts to convert those challenges into opportunities. He mentioned
particularly about the issues of international roaming and that SATRC regulators need to play an
important role to bring down the roaming price. He said SATRC discusses important issues
such as spectrum management, policy and regulatory trends, licensing, broadband etc. and
developed good outcomes through Action Plan deliberations which can guide the members to
take appropriate actions. He concluded his address wishing the delegates for a successful
meeting.
Full texts of Minister’s speech can be found in document INP-03.
3. PLENARY SESSION
A short plenary session was held after the opening session in order to approve the agenda and
program of the 13th SATRC Meeting and to hand over the chairmanship of the SATRC. Mr.
Ananda Raj Khanal, Acting Chairman of Nepal Telecommunication Authority chaired the
plenary session. Chairman introduced the agenda and tentative program of the meeting. It was
agreed by the meeting.
Decision no. 1 (SATRC-14)
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Agenda and program of the 14th meeting of the Council were approved by the meeting.
He mentioned that according to the Terms of Reference of SATRC, Maldives who is the host of
that meeting would take the chairmanship of SATRC for next one year period. He informed the
meeting that Maldives had proposed the name of Mr. Ilyas Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer of
Communication Authority of Maldives. The chairmanship SATRC was handed over to
Maldives.
Decision no. 2 (SATRC-14)
Council appointed Mr. Ilyas Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer of Communication Authority of
Maldives as the Chairman of SATRC until the next meeting.
Mr. Ilyas, the new Chairman of the SATRC thanked Mr. Khanal and NTA for the leadership of
SATRC for last one year. Mr. Ilyas said that he is happy and proud to become the Chairman of
SATRC which is the high level council of the regulators of the nine SATRC member countries.
He promised that during his chairmanship tenure he would work for the betterment of SATRC.
Mr. Ilyas informed the meeting that the Bhutan Infocom and Media Authority would host the
15th SATRC Meeting. He mentioned that according to the practice of SATRC, the ViceChairmanship goes to the host of the next SATRC meeting. He therefore propose the name of
Mr. Sonam Phuntsho, Director of Bhutan Infocom and Media Authority as the Vice-Chairman
of SATRC. It was agreed.
Decision no. 3 (SATRC-14)
Council appointed Mr. Sonam Phuntsho, Director of Bhutan Infocom and Media Authority as
the Vice-Chairman of SATRC.
4. SESSION 1: INDUSTRY-REGULATOR DIALOGUE
Three sessions were allocated for Industry-Regulator dialogue during SATRC-14. Three themes
were allocated for the three sessions accordingly:
- Addressing the Spectrum Issues for Mobile Broadband
- Rationalization of Taxation in Telecom Sector
- Current telecommunication trends and regulatory approach in SATRC Countries
Session Theme: Addressing the Spectrum Issues for Mobile Broadband
The first theme session of the Industry-Regulator dialogue was chaired by Mr. Ilyas Ahmed,
chairman of SATRC. Chairman commented that industry-regulator dialogue provides
opportunities for industry to meet the regulators in the region and rise up the concerns that are
relevant to the industry. He mentioned that the theme of the session is addressing the spectrum
issues for mobile broadband. He added that the session discussion would focus on aspects such
as current challenges that the industry are facing due to spectrum shortage, how much spectrum
would be required for mobile broadband, APT700 band plan along with it’s potential for
worldwide harmonization and regulatory perspective of spectrum demands. He introduced the
panelists:
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Ms. Chris Perera, Senior Director, Spectrum and Regulatory Affairs, GSMA, Hong
Kong
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Mr. Jitendra Singh, Director, Government Affairs , India and SAARC, Qualcomm
India Ltd.
Mr. Mohamed Cassim Mohamed Farook, Deputy Director, Spectrum,
Telecommunication Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka.
Ms. Chris Perera delivered a presentation titled “ 700 MHz Band: Benefits of Early
Harmonization” which can be found in document INP-10. Following points were noted in her
presentation:
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Spectrum is critical for creating a connected society. Securing access to harmonized,
properly priced, predictably regulated and timely available spectrum is critical.
Spectrum harmonization matters as it brings down the cost of mobile devices, enable
people to roam and reduces interference issues along borders.
Coverage bands (such as 700MHz) are more preferable for the operators for IMT
network deployment.
Allocating 700 MHz band (698 – 806 MHz) will increase GDP with US$1,070 B,
taxes with US$215B in addition to 1.4M new business and 2.7M new jobs in AsiaPacific region. Delays in decision will have major impacts on GDP, jobs.
Harmonization on APT700 Bandplan on the way. Countries in Asia-Pacific and in
Latin America are committing to APT700 band plan.
SATRC countries should reap full benefits allocate sooner rather than later.
Mr. Jitendra Singh from Qualcomm India delivered the next presentation titled “Harmonization
of Spectrum and the Mobile Data Challenge” which is in document INP-11. In his deliberation
Mr. Singh pointed out on the following issues:
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Socio-economic contribution of mobile broadband: every 10% increase in mobile
phone penetration rate for developing countries results 2.19% increase in GDP per
capita. Mobile ecosystem contribution to global GDP US$10.5 T, to public funding
US$2.6T and add job 1.3M.
Mobile phone is the major vehicle for bridging the digital divide while compared to
PC installed base and fixed internet penetration.
Mobile data traffic growing exponentially. However, spectrum is critical and
limited. Require more spectrum for mobile broadband.
Globally harmonized spectrum in adequate quantity and at right time will accelerate
Mobile Broadband
APT700 Band Plan provide immense opportunities for Asia-Pacific region to
develop a harmonized approach that will benefit the economy
Mr. Mohamed Cassim Mohamed Farook delivered the last presentation of the theme. His
presentation titled “Spectrum for Mobile Broadband: Sri Lanka’s Envision which is in document
INP-12. He mainly pointed out the initiatives that were taken by Sri Lanka to ensure spectrum
for mobile broadband. He pointed out a number of issues:
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In Sri Lanka a total of 172.5 MHz spectrum has been allocated to six operators for
mobile and mobile broadband services
Very recently, 2x10 MHz spectrum in 1800 MHz band allocated to LTE on closed
bidding process. Floor price was US$ 63, 39,200 and highest bidding was US$
2,59,90,720
Demand was very high that forced the regulator to carry out closed bidding process
to ensure maximum transparency
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All the mobile operators in the country cannot be allocated for all the mobile
services on a fair basis. Allocation for one or two players could lead to monopoly or
duopoly.
Higher price paid for spectrum may push operators to difficult situation in rolling
out of the network and offering affordable tariff in a competitive environment.
Reuse of spectrum for coexistence of 3G and LTE is possible without obtaining
additional spectrum which may lead to anticompetitive environment.
Currently, 700 MHz band in use for analog transmission. Sri Lanka has long term
plan to use the band for mobile broadband.
Chairman thanked all three speakers for their presentation and views. Chairman commented that
spectrum is very scares resource and in many countries it had been considered as big source of
revenue. He added, in some countries it had been considered as tools for providing services to
citizens rather than considering it as source of revenue. He also mentioned that operators are
struggling to fulfill the demand of rapidly increasing data service due to spectrum shortage. He
commented that the three presentations covered the view of the government, operator and
manufacturer. He asked comments from the floor.
Delegate from Telecom Regulatory Authority of India commented that the presentations were
very valuable. He asked regarding the FDD and TDD options in APT700 band plan and whether
it can be kept open on the market force considering the technology neutrality. Ms. Perera replied
that even though the objective of the regulator to consider the technology neutrality and rely on
the market force, sometimes it creates uncertainties in the investment. Particularly she
mentioned that the APT700 band plan has two different options: FDD and TDD. However, there
is no hybrid solution for coexistence for the two options and regulators must need to go for only
one option. It gives a direction to the manufacture and the operators for secure investment. She
further added harmonization for APT700 band plan is converging to FDD options regionally and
outside APT region.
Delegate from Pakistan asked whether there was any study on the valuation of spectrum in
SATRC region. Mr. Farook replied that there was no such common mechanism to value the
spectrum. Its upon the individual country to decide looking at it’s market situation. In case of Sri
Lanka, he mentioned that the spectrum had not been considered as money making source. He
mentioned in many countries spectrum had been sold at very high price which had prevented the
smooth rollout of the services. He added that high price of spectrum would eventually
transferred to customer at the end which should be kept in mind of the regulators. Ms. Perera
supported Mr. Farook’s comment and said that spectrum price is decreasing recently. She gave
example of 3G auctions in Europe in year 2000 when many companies bought spectrum at very
high price and then failed to invest money for core network. As a result service could not start in
time. She also mentioned some unsuccessful auction due to high reserve price.
Mr. Parvez from APT Secretariat asked Mr. Farook regarding the 700 MHz band usage in Sri
Lanka. Mr. Farook replied that there were two active tv channels in the 700 MHz band and
government had taken initiative to relocate the tv channels for using 700MHz band for mobile
communication. He mentioned that it would be a time consuming process. Ms. Perera asked Mr.
Farook regarding the availability of contiguous spectrum for the operators. Mr. Farook replied
that regulator in Sri Lanka had taken several initiatives to ensure the availability contiguous
spectrum as it is quite important for the operators.
Chairman thanked all the delegates for their live and active participation. The session was
concluded.
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5. SESSION 2: INDUSTRY-REGULATOR DIALOGUE (CONTINUED)
Session Theme: Rationalization of Taxation in Telecom Sector
This session of the Industry –Regulator dialogue was chaired by Mr. Lotfollah Saboohi, Vice
President of the Communication Regulatory Authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Chairman
commented that taxation issues are very important issues for telecom sector as taxation basically
converted to the expensed of the consumers. He added that even though telecommunication
regulators are not directly related to taxation, regulators can act as advisor to the government to
reflect the real situation of the industry and take appropriate measure accordingly.
Chairman introduced the following three panelists for the discussion on theme topics.
- Mr. Rajesh Kumar Arnold, Member, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
- Mr. Alloisus Mohan Ramaiah, Assistant Vice President, Axiata Group Berhad
- Mr. Ananda Raj Khanal, Acting Chairman, Nepal Telecommunication Authority
Mr. Arnold delivered presentation titled “Tax Rationalization in Telecom Sector” which is in
document INP-13. On taxation in telecom sector Mr. Arnold raised following points:
- Digital divide is still a challenge
- Optimization of taxes is important as it is directly related to telecom demand.
Reduction in taxes will lower the service prices which eventually increase the
adoption of the service and increase the use of the service
- All levels of Government are trying to bring the sector within the tax ambit and more
than 30% of revenue as tax on telecom sector
- There is a need to study the taxation in telecom sector. A comparative analysis of tax
structure in the telecom sector in SATRC countries will help to identify the areas of
improvement and standardization. It is also necessary to resolve the ambiguities and
arriving at an optimal tax structure.
Chairman thanked Mr. Arnold to bring out the regulatory perspective of the taxation in telecom
sector.
Mr. Ramaiah delivered presentation titled “Taxation in Telecom Sector” which in in document
INP-14. He highlighted impact of taxation on mobile telecom sector in Bangladesh:
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Taxation on mobile telecom sector in some SATRC countries is highest when
compared to other parts of the world
Operators are struggling even more to overcome the huge tax burden as lower
income segments are being penetrated
Mobile industry is contributing almost 10% of the national revenue. Operators are
paying almost 51% of their cumulative revenue to the Governments turning their
operations to a loss.
Impact of taxation is also creating adverse effect such as increased price for
consumers, buy less spectrum, reduced network investment, consolidation or exit
from market, invoking investor protection treaties etc.
Government should reconsider tax policy and there should be a counter-balancing
between taxation policy and business profitability to ensure sustainable business
environment.
Chairman thanked Mr. Ramaiah for pointing out the industry perspective on the impact of high
taxation in telecom sector.
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Chairman then requested Mr. Ananda Raj Khanal for his views on theme. Mr. Ananda supported
the regulatory perspective and operator’s perspective that were presented earlier. He informed
that considering the importance of the subject matter, 13th SATRC meeting allocated the work
item to SATRC Working Group on Policy, Regulation and Services. The working group is
carrying out studies on the subject matter. He mentioned that telecom industry is facing difficult
situation and facing severe burden which in turn transferring either to consumer or some illicit
practices. He emphasized the importance of a study on the impact of taxation on the sector so
that the real situation and recommendation can be carried forward to the relevant department of
the government.
Chairman thanked three speakers for their points and asked comments from floor. Delegate from
Bhutan commented that in Bhutan the issue was raised internally and it was convinced that
reducing tax would in fact increase revenue for the government. It happened in reality and
Bhutan is having lowest tax in the region. He suggested to take similar approach in other
countries with specific data and recommendation. He hoped that SATRC could be a good forum
to start the initiative. Delegate from India suggested to hire a special consultant for carrying out
the study. India also commented that overall objective should be the benefit of the whole
country, not only revenue collection. Mr. Ananda suggested members to reply to the
questionnaire on the related work item to make a conclusion and make recommendation. Mr.
Ramaiah emphasized that business sustainability is important and operators need to come
forward together for the initiatives.
Chairman thanked all for taking part in the interactive discussion. He commented that the issue
is rationalization of tax not the reduction of tax. Chairman suggested SATRC members to reply
to the questionnaire so that study can be conducted and good recommendation can be made.
6. SESSION 3: INDUSTRY-REGULATOR DIALOGUE (CONTINUED)
Session Theme: Current Telecom Trends and Regulatory Approach in SATRC Countries
This session was chaired by Mr. Rajesh Kumar Arnold, Member, Telecom Regulatory Authority
of India. He informed that the session theme was ‘Current Telecom Trends and Regulatory
Approach in SATRC Countries and there were four panelist in the session to discuss on the
theme. The panelists were:
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Mr. Ali Asghar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Information Technology, Pakistan
Mr. Ananda Raj Khanal, Acting Chairman, Nepal Telecommunication Authority
Mr. Mohamed Musad, Director, Networks, Dhiraagu, Maldives
Ms. Gulnaz Mahir, Head of VAS and Data, Wataniya Telecom, Maldives
Chairman requested panelist limit their discussion mainly on two aspects:
- Regulatory challenges arising from new mobile ecosystem
- Innovative applications/services in broadband network.
Mr. Ali Asghar focused on the initiatives taken by the Government of Pakistan for broadband
development. He mentioned following points:
- Government adopted ICT Vision 2020 in order to ensure fully connected society
through seamless connectivity to ICT, broadband and multimedia services.
- ICT network will encompass access to education, health, agriculture, e-banking and
financial transactions, disaster warning etc.
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Telecom sector in a dynamic sector in Pakistan. Broadband penetration is increasing
rapidly. Special projects had been taken for rural areas.
- Mobile banking sector and branchless banking sector had grown tremendously in
Pakistan as broadband services. It has been recognized by the World Bank as world’s
fastest growing.
- Regulator is planning to implement 4G and WiMAX technologies in near future to
meet the demand.
- By the year 2020 100%network will be on NGN infrastructure and internet would be
the backbone of the country.
Chairman thanks Mr. Asghar for his informative presentation on the initiatives taken in Pakistan
for broadband development. Chairman then invited Mr. Musad to present his views. Mr. Musad
focused on the difficulties that they were facing as operator to provide broadband services in
Maldives. He pointed out followings:
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The trend of telecommunication services has been reversed. While in past voice was
the main service and data was supplementary service, situation has been reversed at
present.
Operators are facing huge challenges to provide broadband services as revenue is
decreasing drastically and it is not economically feasible to provide broadband
services to remote area where subscriber level is too low.
The new and innovative services are important for saturated market to maintain
market force. However, there are still number of challenges for innovative services
such legal framework, security and privacy issues, content piracy and frequency
shortage.
Chairman thanked Mr. Musad for giving operators perspective of the challenges. He then
invited Mr. Ananda Raj Khanal to present his views. Mr. Khanal shared the current regulatory
trends and challenges that Nepal is facing. He focused on the Nepal recent initiatives on
migration of licensing regime. His pointed out followings:
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New legal framework had been developed for the migration of licensing regime.
To implement the migration licensing regime new spectrum policy had been in place
for allocation, assignment and pricing of spectrum.
Regulator was facing legal law suits concerning the framework and spectrum policy
related to the migration. It had created uncertainties in the sector.
Mentioning the background of previous practice of grating licenses for mobile
services, he mentioned that licensing fee was not equal for all GSM operators. That
created unequal treatment of the licensee. Regulator took initiative to level the
market so that all operators pay the same fee on equal ground.
Regulator asked the operators to migrate to new licensing regime with incentives.
However, it was not followed by all operators. A number of court cases were filed
against the migration initiatives and spectrum policy. Court gave stay orders on the
action. As a result, whole the process was in unmoving position.
Mr. Khanal requested any SATRC members to share their experiences on this regard and what
could be done to find a way to solution. Chairman thanked Mr. Ananda to bring the very
practical issue that Nepal regulator was facing.
Chairman requested Ms. Gulnaz Mahir to present her views on the theme. Ms. Mahir expressed
her views on the context of Maldives focusing the challenges that operators were facing even
though low taxation and less regulatory interference. Her points were as follows:
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People were technology hungry and customer expectation was high for efficient
network.
Considering the small population size tele-density was quite high and life style
heavily dependent on internet.
Wataniya introduced new and innovative services to cope the demand of the
customers such a 4G services and payment of utility bills using mobile phone and
internet.
Challenges included very high cost for network establishment due to geography,
economy of scale not possible sometimes as some islands had fewer population as
well as high internet bandwidth cost. There were logistic difficulties as well to
provide uninterrupted services in all islands specially during bad weather conditions.
Cost of electricity also provided big challenges for the operators.
Cooperation among regulators and operators could help to cope with the challenges.
One such example could be site sharing to reach the customer in remote areas.
Chairman thanked Ms. Mahir for pointing the practical problems that operators were facing in
Maldives even though taxation was low and less interference from regulator.
Chairman thanked all four panelists for sharing the experiences. He requested delegates for
comments and questions. Bhutan asked regarding the difficulties internet connectivity for landlock countries as those countries had to rely on the operators who generally provide the
connectivity. Bhutan requested Nepal’s experience to overcome the problem. Mr. Khanal
supported the comments of Bhutan and mentioned that Nepal was also facing the similar
situation. He mentioned that WCIT-2012 adopted a Resolution which provides the right for
land-lock countries to get the international connectivity via optical fiber. He hoped that the
Resolution would be implemented after 2015, situation might improve.
Maldives commented that operators in Maldives were trying hard to provide broadband services
in the cities and remote areas. He added that costs of international and local connectivity were
very high due to the geography of Maldives. He said that the cost of international connectivity is
comparatively high for Maldives where the economies of scale is very less compared to larger
countries like India. Users in Maldives pay almost ten times more for the international
connectivity compared to users in India. This is a big challenges for operators in providing good
service at reasonable price. He mentioned that similar situation might be faced by country like
Bhutan, Nepal and Afghanistan.
Chairman thanked all the delegates to participate in the interactive discussion and sharing
experience. He hoped that the SATRC as a regional forum would be able to address those
challenges through cooperation.
7. SESSION 4 AND 5: SHARING REGULATOR’S EXPERIENCE
Mr. Ilyas Ahmed, Chairman of SATRC chaired sessions 4 and 5. He mentioned that the
objective of those two sessions was to sharing the experience of SATRC members regarding
their achievements and challenges that they were facing. He invited all eight SATRC Members
who attended the 14th SATRC meeting. Following presentations were delivered:
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‘Spectrum and broadband in context of Bangladesh’ by Bangladesh Telecommunication
Regulatory Commission which can be found in document SATRC-14/INP-15
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‘Tariff regulation for domestic and international leased lines – Bhutan’s experience’ by
Bhutan Infocom and Media Authority which can be found in document SATRC-14/INP16.
‘National broadband plan in India’ by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India which can
be found in document SATRC-14/INP-17.
‘ICT regulation and activities in Islamic Republic of Iran’ by Communication Regulatory
Authority, Islamic Rep. of Iran which can be found in document SATRC-14/INP-18.
‘Communications in Maldives’ by Communication Authority of Maldives which can be
found in document SATRC-14/INP-19.
‘Paradigm shift in the utilization of USO Fund’ by Nepal Telecommunication Authority
which can be found in document SATRC-14/INP-20.
‘Telecom policies and regulation in Pakistan – Issues and challenges” by Ministry of
Information Technology which can be found in document SATRC-14/INP-21
‘Broadband development in Sri Lanka’ by Telecommunication Regulatory Commission
of Sri Lanka which can be found in document SATRC-14/INP-22.
Chairman thanked all the presenters for sharing the experience. He expressed hope that the
sharing experiences and achievements would benefit all the SATRC members.
8. SESSION 6: ACTION PLAN PHASE IV
This session was chaired by Mr. Sonam Phuntsho, Director, Bhutan InfoCom and Media
Authority (BICMA). The objective of the session was to report the activities of the SATRC
Action Plan Phase IV.
8.1 Report of Implementation of the SATRC Action Plan Phase IV (Doc. SATRC-14/INP-04)
Mr. Forhadul Parvez from APT Secretariat presented the report of implementation of SATRC
Action Plan Phase IV. He informed that Action Plan Phase IV is progressing well and thanked
SATRC members for providing cooperation in implementing the Action Plan. He mentioned
that two SATRC Working Groups were working as scheduled and Working Group on Spectrum
had finalized outcomes of the assigned work items and those has been submitted to the meeting
for approval.
Chairman thanked Mr. Parvez for reporting the progress of the implementation of SATRC
Action Plan Phase IV.
Decision no. 4 (SATRC-14)
Council noted the “Report of the Implementation of the SATRC Action Plan Phase IV”.
8.2 Report of the Income and Expenditure for Implementation of SATRC Action Plan Phase
IV (Doc. SATRC-14/INP-06)
Mr. Mohamed Amir from APT Secretariat presented the Report of the Income and Expenditure
for Implementation of SATRC Action Plan Phase IV. He informed the meeting on the estimated
expenditure for Action Plan Phase IV, extra budgetary contributions received from SATRC
members, amount necessary for implementing part of the Action Plan. He also requested
SATRC Members who have not paid their pledged contribution for the implementation of
Action Plan Phase IV to kindly arrange the payments in order to implement the remaining
activities of the Action Plan.
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Chairman thanked Mr. Amir for the report and requested the importance of member’s
contribution towards implementation of Action Plan. He requested the members to provide their
pledged contribution for smooth implementation of Action Plan Phase IV in time.
Mr. Ilyas Ahmed, chairman of SATRC commented that Members were contributing indirectly
on top of their pledged amount such as hosting meetings which sometimes much higher than
their pledged amount for Action Plan implementation. He suggested whether that could be
mentioned in the report as well. Mr. Amir mentioned that it would be included in the report
which would be submitted at the end of Action Plan Phase IV
Decision no. 5 (SATRC-14)
Council approved the “Report of the Income and Expenditure for Implementation of the
SATRC Action Plan Phase IV”.
Action no. 1 (SATRC-14)
To include contribution by members for hosting SATRC events in the Report of the
Income and Expenditure.
8.3 Discussion on the Implementation of the SATRC Action Plan Phase IV
Chairman requested the floor to provide any comments or concerns for the implementation of
Action Plan Phase IV.
Mr. Khanal, Acting Chairman of Nepal Telecommunication Authority, mentioned the
difficulties getting responses of the questionnaires developed by the SATRC Working Groups.
He requested members to reply to those questionnaires in time. Chairman commented that
sometimes concerned people did not receive the questionnaires and hence was not able to reply.
He suggested APT Secretariat to circulate those to concerned experts. APT Secretariat advised
that in each Working Groups there was list of enlisted experts and all the questionnaires were
sent to those experts. However, some of those experts never replied. APT Secretariat suggested
that the regulators should suggest those experts to be active and take full responsibilities of the
questionnaires so that experts can become more responsible. Chairman agreed with the
suggestion and added that a copy of each email should be given to the head of the regulators so
that they became aware of the circulation of the questionnaire.
Mr. Khanal also raised concern that for Action Plan activities related experts are given priority
for attending and getting the fellowships. He added that in many cases it had not been done as
APT Secretariat sends invitation to the contact point which is the ministry. He sought some steps
from APT Secretariat to ensure that. Chairman also supported the comment of Mr. Khanal
suggested Secretariat to take some steps. APT Secretariat advised that for SATRC activities
invitation and offers were sent to APT contact points as well as copy to the regulators. To avoid
such problem he suggested to increase communication with the contact point so that the contact
point are aware that Action Plan activities are for the related experts in regulatory bodies.
Mr. Khanal queried whether APT Secretariat taking any steps to recognize the work of the
experts. APT Secretariat replied that the issue had been discussed internally at the Secretariat
and Secretariat was making arrangement for that. It would be started soon once approved at the
Management Committee. To make the work more effective, Secretariat proposed the Working
Groups to consider having e-meeting in between physical meetings. It would increase the
relationship among Working Group experts and accelerate the work.
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Chairman concluded that appropriate steps would benefit the work of SATRC Action Plan. He
thanked delegates for their valuable comments. The session was closed.
Action no. 2 (SATRC-14)
APT Secretariat to check possibilities for e-meetings for the Working Groups between
physical meetings.
9. SESSION 7: ACTION PLAN PHASE IV (CONTINUED)
This session was chaired by Mr. Ali Asghar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Information
Technology, Pakistan. The objective of the session was to report the activities of the SATRC
Working Group on Policy, Regulation and Services.
9.1 Progress Report of the SATRC Working Group on Policy, Regulation and Services (Doc.
SATRC-14/INP-08)
The report was presented by Mr. V. K. Agarwal from Telecom Regulatory Authority of India,
who is also the expert of SATRC Working Group on Policy, Regulation and Services. He
informed the meeting that due to prior arrangement Mr. Sudhir Kumar Gupta, Chairman of the
Working Group was not been able to attend. He informed the meeting about the structure of the
Working Group, detail of work items and work progress on those and the outcomes of the
meeting of Working Group. He mentioned that the Working Groups had not finalized any
outcomes for approval.
Chairman thanked Mr. Agrawal for providing the update on the Working Group and asked
comment from floor. There were no comments. It was noted by the meeting.
Decision no. 6 (SATRC-14)
Council noted the progress report of the SATRC Working Group on Policy, Regulation and
Services.
9.2 Presentation on “Strategies for IPv6 Migration” (Doc. SATRC-14/INP-23)
This presentation was delivered by Mr. V. K. Agarwal. Mr. Agarwal informed the meeting that
the title of the presentation was related to the work item of Working Group on Policy,
Regulation and Services. He shared the global perspective and initiatives for IPv6 migration. He
also focused the situation in SATRC countries and shared Indian initiatives for IPv6 migration.
Chairman thanked Mr. Agarwal for his very informative presentation and hoped that Indian
experience would help other countries in the region. The session was closed.
10. SESSION 8: ACTION PLAN PHASE IV (CONTINUED)
This session was chaired by Mr. Ananda Raj Khanal, Acting Chairman, Nepal
Telecommunication Authority. The objective of the session was to report the activities of the
SATRC Working Group on Spectrum and approve the final outcomes of the Working Groups.
10.1
Progress Report on SATRC Working Group on Spectrum (Doc.: SATRC-14/INP-09)
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This outcome was presented by Mr. Forhadul Parvez from APT Secretariat in absence of Dr.
Mina Dashti, Chairman of the SATRC Working Group on Spectrum. Mr. Parvez informed the
meeting that the report was prepared by Dr. Dashti. However, due to some unavoidable situation
she was not able to attend the meeting. He informed the meeting about the structure of the
Working Group, detail of work items and work progress on those and the outcomes of the
meeting of Working Group. He mentioned that the Working Group had finalized two outcomes
which had been submitted to the SATRC-14 meeting for approval.
Chairman thanked Mr. Parvez for elaborately present the activities of the Working Group on
Spectrum. He sought comments from floor. There were no comments and the report was noted.
Decision no. 7 (SATRC-14)
Council noted the progress report of the SATRC Working Group on Spectrum
10.2 SATRC Report on “Harmonized Use of 700MHz Digital Dividend Band” (Doc.:
SATRC-14/INP-05)
Mr. Parvez from APT Secretariat presented the draft report. He informed the meeting that
Working Group on Spectrum was assigned a work item on the title and completed the work
based one the replies to the questionnaires from SATRC members. He mentioned that Mr.
Ikramul Haq from Pakistan Telecommunication Authority worked as lead expert on the work
item. He added that the report had analyzed current trends in 700 MHz band, APT’s initiatives
for harmonization at this band and current usage of the band in SATRC countries. The report
also contain several recommendation for SATRC such as to adopt a joint announcement for the
adoption of APT band plan for 700 MHz. He submitted the report for the approval of the
meeting.
Chairman thanked Mr. Parvez for the presentation and commented that the Working Group had
done excellent work by suggesting recommendation. He sought approval of the report. It was
approved.
Decision no. 8 (SATRC-14)
Council approved the SATRC Report on “ Harmonized Use of 700MHz Digital Dividend
Band ”
10.3 SATRC Report on Process of Arranging the Agreement between Countries in
Cellular Network (Doc.: SATRC-14/INP-07)
Mr. Parvez from APT Secretariat presented the draft report. He informed the meeting that
Working Group on Spectrum was assigned a work item on the title and completed the work
based one the replies to the questionnaires from SATRC members. He mentioned that Ms.
Maryam Espandar from Communication Regulatory Authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran
worked as lead expert on the work item. He added that the report provides a guideline and a
template for SATRC members to make an arrangement of reducing cross border interference in
case of mobile networks. He submitted the report for the approval of the meeting.
Chairman thanked Mr. Parvez for the presentation and commented that the Working Group had
done excellent work by suggesting guideline and template. He also thanked Islamic Republic of
Iran for sharing it’s experience with neighbor Azerbaijan on the issue. He sought approval of
the report. It was approved.
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Decision no. 9 (SATRC-14)
Council approved the SATRC Report on ‘Process of Arranging the Agreement between
Countries in Cellular Network”
10.4
Discussion on Work Items
Chairman informed the meeting that the approved SATRC Report on “Harmonized Use of
700MHz Digital Dividend Band” recommended to adopt a joint announcement by SATRC
members regarding the adoption of APT700 Band Plan for harmonized use in the region. He
suggested members to consider draft texts for the joint announcement. The draft texts for the
announcement were distributed. Chairman mentioned that due to the use of 700 MHz Band for
analog tv transmission in Islamic Republic of Iran and Sri Lanka they would not be able to
include their names in the announcement at the moment. He sought comments of the floor on
this regard. The announcement was adopted. Final version of the announcement is in document
SATRC-14/OUT-01.
Decision no. 10 (SATRC-14)
Council approved the joint announcement on the use of 700 MHz band for mobile broadband
which is in document SATRC-14/OUT-03.
Chairman thanked all the delegates and APT Secretariat for their contribution and hard works.
The session was concluded.
11. SESSION 9: CLOSING PLENARY
This session was chaired by Mr. Ilyas Ahmed, Chairman of SATRC. Chairman mentioned that
the objective of the session was to approve the outcomes and suggest way forward for SATRC
activities
11.1
Cooperation Among SATRC Members in International Events:
Mr. Mohamed Amir from APT Secretariat informed the meeting that there had been request
from ITU GSR to provide input from South Asia to the regulatory association meeting during
GSR 2013. He also mentioned that ITU had invited representatives from SATRC. He suggested
SATRC to take some initiatives on this regard.
Chairman thanked Mr. Amir. He suggested if Chairman of SATRC can attend the GSR then he
could represent SATRC there. If Chairman is not able to attend, any regulator from SATRC
countries who would attend GSR may represent SATRC after discussion with SATRC chairman
and APT Secretariat. He asked comments from the floor. Mr. Amir informed that currently APT
Secretariat receive the invitations for such events. APT Secretariat would forward those
invitations` to SATRC members so that they could be aware of those and coordinate with the
Chairman and APT Secretariat. Bhutan supported the suggestion of the Chairman and
commented that SATRC Chairman and Vice-Chairman could take the role of representing
SATRC in international event. Mr. Amir mentioned that APT Secretariat would activate the
email reflector for the head of the regulatory bodies in SATRC countries. He felt that would
enhance the communications among the head of regulatory bodies. It was agreed by the meeting.
Decision no. 11 (SATRC-14)
Council decided that:
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

SATRC Chairman or Vic-Chairman would represent SATRC in international events
on invitation. If Chairman or Vice-Chairman are not available any SATRC member
whoever would attend the event would represent SATRC after consultation with
Chairman and APT Secretariat.
Email reflector for the head of the regulatory bodies of SATRC countries should be
reactivated to facilitate communications among the regulators.
Action no. 3 (SATRC-14)
APT Secretariat to establish Email reflector for the head of the regulatory bodies of
SATRC countries.
11.2 Adoption of the SATRC Implementation Calendar for 2013 – 2014 (Doc.: SATRC14/OUT-04)
Mr. Amir introduced the document. He mentioned that in next one year time four SATRC events
had been agreed by the head of delegation meeting. Event’s name, time frame and venue had
been mentioned in the document. He presented the document for the adoption by the Council. It
was adopted by the Council.
Decision no. 12 (SATRC-14)
Council adopted the SATRC Implementation Calendar for 2013 -2014.
11.3 Date and Venue of the 14th SATRC Meeting
Mr. Sonam Phuntsho, Director of Bhutan Infocom and Media Authority invited the Council to
have its 15th Meeting in Bhutan. He suggested that the month of August would be better for
them to host. It was agreed by the Council. Chairman suggested APT Secretariat to
communicate with the Bhutan Infocom and Media Authority for exact date and venue of the
meeting.
Decision no. 13 (SATRC-14)
Council decide that the 15th Meeting of SATRC will be held in Bhutan and will be hosted by
Bhutan Infocom and Media Authority.
11.4 Closing
Mr. Ilyas Ahmed, SATRC Chairman thanked the head of each delegation for their presence at
the meeting and their effort for the successful meeting. He also thanked Mr. Kraisorn Pornsutee
and APT Secretariat for their hard works. He promised that as the Chairman of SATRC he
would try his best to enhance the SATRC activities among its members.
Mr. Kraisorn Pornsutee thanked all the regulators for very successful meeting and for their
contribution to SATRC activities. He also congratulated on the new leadership taken by Mr.
Ilyas Ahmed, SATRC Chairman and Mr. Sonam Phuntsho, Vice Chairman of SATRC. He
thanked the team of CAM who had successfully provided all the hosting facilities. He assured
that APT Secretariat would do its best for the success of SATRC activities.
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Chairman declared the meeting closed.
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